Bad sevice @ MNT Brits Mall

To whom it may concern

My husband (Marthinus Nicolaas Eloff ********** 048087)has had a contract with you for years. A few months ago he decided to cancel the contract and use his phone as a prepaid phone.

He realised that it cost him more to do it this way and wanted to renew his contract again.

We went to MTN store in Brits Mall. We app**** for a new contract and device (we wanted the iPhone SE) on his old number ( ********** 086). Eventually we decided to take the device (Samsung A5) that they had in stock, because if they ordered the iPhone SE we were told that it takes 2 to 4 weeks to deliver!!

On 2 January the assistant, Mrs Langeveldt, from the store phoned us to inform us that the application was successful. When I checked with them whether this was approved on the old number ( ********** 086), they said it was approved on a new number.

My husband then said that that was not what he app**** for, they must change the contract to the old number. They even suggest that he must use his old sim in the new device and the new sim (with the airtime, sms’s and data!!) in the old phone. How ridiculous!! His old phone is a Blackberry and does not receive WhatsApp’s anymore!

They promised to see what they can do. We have been waiting until last week Wednesday, 17 January. On Thursday we diced to go to MTN 14th Avenue in Fairlands to see if they can’t help us.

A guy by the name of Oscar was very helpful and sent an e-mail to the “back”, I presume it must be the technicians or whoever work with this kind of query. We waited there for about 4 hours until he got an e-mail response saying that the contract was now approved on the old number. The reference number that he used was: 1- ********** 5474

He also phoned Brits Mall to inform them that the contract was now approved on the old number ( ********** 086).He said we can just go back to Brits mall and pick up the new device.

On Friday morning my husband got this message from MTN: "MTN Welcomes you to the MTN Made For Me M contract. Visit the MyMTN app to get balances, view usage, view bill details, recharge and purchase bundles"

When we visited the Brits Mall store on Friday afternoon, (we are 56 km from Brits) after the assistant was on the phone for how long, we were informed that the contract was now cancelled, by a lady at head office by the name of Emu/Enu/ Eno?? We have to start the application process all over!!

I thought that I was going to explode! After all this trouble, 20 days later and how many kilometres we were back to square one!

I then asked them if we could now go to any store to apply, because, I’ve really had enough this people, who are clearly not competent to do their job. They said yes, we could apply at any shop.

I checked on Google, and it showed that 216 14th Ave is open on Sundays from 9 – 5. I even phoned ********** to check if this was correct and the lady that answered said that they were indeed open. So, we drove the 200km to 14th Ave again, just to find out that everything was closed!

We then went to the MTN shop in Cradlestone Mall. A guy by the name of Bongani helped us there. We explained everything to him. When he put my husband’s ID no ( ********** 048087) and old number ********** 086 into the computer, it showed that the contract is still active and running. We then checked the balance on the old phone (*141# dial) and it looks like the airtime, sms’s and data was already loaded onto the sim card in his old phone!

When we got to the car I phoned MTN Brits Mall again, to ask them what was going on. First they denied that they said that the contract was cancelled. They said they informed us that they will phone head office on Monday and then come back to us. After I asked them if they accuse me of lying, they later acknowledged that they did say the contract was cancelled and that we can go apply somewhere else.

I asked the assistant who helped us if they are on a totally different system than Cradlestone. I wanted her to put my husband’s ID and old phone number into the computer so that she too can see what Bongani showed us, but she just kept on saying she was going to phone head office to find out why they said the contract was cancelled.

On Monday 22 January, 14:30 I sent an e-mail to MTN customer care to complain abut this matter.

I told them I please want an urgent response to the e-mail. I told them if I do not hear from them by Wednesday 16:00, I’m going to Beeld’s Verbruikersforum and to hellopeter. on Monday afternoon they sent me an e-mail, saying the will contact me within 8 hours. On Wednesday morning I got the same e-mail. Nobody has phoned me up till now. Annemarie Eloff